Apidologie 40 (2009) 517-523
DOI: 10.1051/apido/2009030

Genome size estimation of three stingless bee species (Hymenoptera, Meliponinae) by flow cytometry

Denilce Meneses Lopes, Carlos Roberto de Carvalho, Wellington Ronildo Clarindo, Milene Miranda Praça and Mara Garcia Tavares

Departamento de Biologia Geral, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Av. P H Rolfs, s/n , CEP: 36.570-000, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Received 2 July 2008 – Revised 26 November 2008 – Accepted 2 December 2008 - Published online 6 June 2009

Abstract - The present study standardizes a reproducible flow cytometry (FCM) protocol for DNA content measurement of bee species and applied it to Scaptotrigona and Melipona species. The mean nuclear DNA content value of male and female S. xantotricha was 0.42 pg (410.8 Mbp) and 0.44 pg (430.3 Mbp), respectively, while the mean haploid genome size was determined to be 0.93 pg (909.5 Mbp) for M. rufiventris and 0.95 pg (929.1 Mbp) for M. mondury. The variation observed in this study, albeit in a preliminary way, may be related with the variation in the heterochromatin content in the chromosomes of Scaptotrigona and Melipona species. The results provide a starting point for comparative analysis on the patterns of genome size variation in the stingless bees.

Key words: flow cytometry / genome size / Hymenoptera / stingless bees


© INRA, DIB-AGIB, EDP Sciences 2009